A Concert for Minneapolis: Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Shine at the Armory
Billed as “A Concert for Minneapolis” and broadcast live on local public radio station 89.3 The Current, Thursday night’s show with Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit at the Armory carried a sense that it was more than just another stop on the tour. The venue was packed, and from the start the crowd felt fully engaged, the kind of audience that wasn’t just there to hear songs they recognized but to really listen to them.
Isbell opened the night with “Hope the High Road,” a strong and familiar way to get things started before quickly moving into “Outfit,” a song from his early days with Drive-By Truckers. It was a reminder of where a lot of this music began, and hearing it now in a large room like the Armory gave the song a little extra weight.
Between songs, Isbell spoke about his long relationship with Minneapolis. He mentioned trying Somali food in the city for the first time and shared that he once wrote the song “Eileen” while staying in a Minneapolis hotel. He also talked about the influence of Prince, saying it felt good to be in a place where so much great music had been made. “It motivated me, and it inspired me,” he said, a comment that felt fitting in a city with such a deep musical history.
From there the band worked through a stretch of songs that showed the depth of Isbell’s catalog, including “Alabama Pines,” “Chaos and Clothes,” and the high-energy “Super 8.” The 400 Unit sounded incredibly steady all night. With most of the band playing together for nearly fifteen years, there’s a natural chemistry between them that comes through in the details. They played like a well-oiled machine, but never in a way that felt stiff or overly polished.
The first set closed with “King of Oklahoma” and then “Cover Me Up,” which stood out as one of the emotional highlights of the night. Isbell’s voice filled the wide arena space with ease, and his guitar tone was sharp, clear, and purposeful. When he stepped into a solo, it always felt like it served the song rather than trying to overpower it.
For the encore, Isbell returned with “If We Were Vampires,” one of the songs many in the crowd had clearly been waiting for. The room grew noticeably quieter as the audience leaned into the performance. To close the night, the band stretched out with a loose and lively cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking,” with Isbell and guitarist Sadler Vaden trading guitar solos back and forth.
It was a fitting end to a night that balanced thoughtful songwriting with confident musicianship. In a packed Armory, with an attentive Minneapolis crowd and a band that knows each other inside and out, the songs had plenty of room to land.
